ACC's Mentor Program, a membership benefit to enhance professional growth and development, and specifically targeted to help younger members learn from the experience of more seasoned members has been re-launched for 2013-2014. Free to all members, the Mentor Program through a pairing process will match less experienced ACC members with more senior counterparts to share professional and personal skills and experiences, fostering new relationships, career growth and development.

ACC members should apply to be a mentee or mentor via the ACC Web site in the Members-Only area. To log in, your email address is your username and your password (in most cases) is your last name. October 1, 2013 is the deadline for individuals to join the program and runs through June 30, 2014. If you are not currently a member, and you want to participate in the Mentor Program, the membership fee is only $100 for the first year, a $100 discount off the regular fee of $200. For additional information or help with logging into the Members-Only area, please contact Steve Jones at sjones@cablecommunicators.org or 202-222-2373.

Time Warner Cable Donates $1.6 Million to NYC Media Lab Through its $1.6 million contribution and partnership with the NYC Media Lab, Time Warner Cable is now one of the largest corporate supporters of the organization. NYC Media Lab, launched in 2010 by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC), NYU Polytechnic Institute (NYU-Poly) and Columbia University, already has received more than half of the announced donation and will continue to receive the remaining funds through 2020. Additionally, Time Warner Cable’s Research Program on Digital Communications will fund NYU-Poly’s broadband Internet research through the NYC Media Lab.

“Time Warner Cable’s $1.6 million contribution to NYC Media Lab recognizes the importance of connecting academia with industry leaders and thinkers to spur further growth of a vibrant technology community in New York,” said Glenn Britt, Time Warner Cable’s Chairman and CEO. “Our partnership demonstrates the value of working closely with academic institutions undertaking research which will benefit and change the future of technology, and the ways in which we work and live. Time Warner Cable is excited to partner with NYC Media Lab and NYU-Poly on a project that can influence how we think about the future of Internet usage and growth."

Through the partnership, Time Warner Cable will leverage the research, development, knowledge and talent at NYU-Poly to analyze and discover more innovative ways to use and provide Internet services. The relationship provides NYU-Poly staff and students the opportunity to better prepare for the future of the technology industry and analyze current issues Internet service providers are facing today.

NYC Media Lab is a public-private partnership encompassing all the universities of New York City. The Lab tackles the big questions facing the media industry today, with the goal of generating research, knowledge transfer, talent development, R&D and new business models. NYC Media Lab encourages collaboration among colleges and universities with technology companies to foster innovation and academic research in digital media in New York City. For more information about NYC Media Lab, visit www.nycmedialab.org. For additional information about Time Warner Cable's partnership with NYC Media Lab, contact Eric Mangan at Eric.Mangan@twcable.com or 212-364-8297.

Investigation Discovery’s Inspire A Difference Initiative Investigation Discovery announced an advertising partnership with Glamour magazine to bolster national awareness for a new public affairs initiative, Inspire A Difference. Launched in April, the initiative links the networks programming and raises awareness to encourage a national dialogue about victims' rights and healing. Investigation Discovery will formally roll out the campaign on September 9 at the inaugural Inspire A Difference Honors Event in the Edison Ballroom in New York City, where it will co-host an evening with Glamour to recognize three honorees—Emily Deschanel (Five Acres), Kristin Chenoweth (Maddie’s Corner) and Brittany Snow (Love is Louder)—and the charities they partner with to bring some of these important issues to the forefront.

Focusing on topics such as violence against women, domestic abuse, anti-bullying, sexual assault and Civil Rights, Inspire A Difference is designed to help empower viewers to make an impact in their own communities. This multi-media campaign employs a variety of tactics, including on-air PSAs, digital resources, and local and national events.

In addition to the inaugural awards ceremony, Investigation Discovery embarked on an advertising partnership with Glamour to help alert the cause to its readers, celebrating women across the country whose dedication to victim’s rights and healing are inspiring others to action. A four-page advertorial in the September issue (on newsstands now) highlights the work of Deschanel, Chenoweth and Snow, and their chosen charities. In addition, the network and Glamour created a national call-to-action for readers to nominate an everyday hero. One reader will be honored in Glamour’s December issue, and their chosen charity will receive a $5,000 donation from the network.

“We are thrilled to have the support of Glamour and its readers to help us formally launch Inspire A Difference as we celebrate the work of our celebrity honorees,” said Henry Schleiff, president and general manager, Investigation Discovery. “Emily, Kristin and Brittany have clearly lent their voices to issues where it might have been traditionally difficult to speak up, and at ID it is our hope that their acceptance of the Inspire A Difference award further encourages our audience and Glamour’s readership to help put an end to insensible acts of injustice that still affect women every single day.”

The campaign launched in April, 2013 in partnership with the National Center for Victims of Crime (NCVC), and featured Paula Zahn (On the Case with Paula Zahn) discussing the issue of stalking in the U.S. Currently a PSA is running that features Charisma Carpenter (Surviving Evil), providing resources to individuals, families and communities harmed by crime through resources offered by NCVC. Tamron Hall, (Deadline: Crime with Tamron Hall) will be featured in an October PSA in partnership with the National Network to End Domestic Violence (NNEDV). For additional information, contact Reenie Kuhlman at Reenie_Kuhlman@discovery.com or 240-463-5068.Back to Top

Suddenlink Helps Teen’s Make-A-Wish Come True

A nineteen-year-old Make-A-Wish recipient, Phillip, from Kanawha County, WVA who was diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease at 17, was welcomed home after he returned from a trip to Los Angeles, where his wish came true. His wish was a VIP tour of Activision’s Infinity Ward Studio, home of the Call of Duty gaming franchise, to observe a day in the life of a video game designer. The trip was made possible by a donation from Suddenlink, and to wrap it up, the company hosted a welcome-back event at a West Virginia Power baseball game.

Family and friends joined Phillip, as well as Charleston Deputy Mayor Rod Blackstone and representatives from Make-A-Wish and Suddenlink who participated in the festivities. Phillip received a team jersey and threw the ceremonial first pitch at the West Virginia Power-Hickory Crawdads game at Appalachian Power Park.

"We are grateful for the generous donations of businesses like Suddenlink to make magical wishes possible for kids like Phillip," said president and CEO Judi Stone of Make-A-Wish® Greater Pennsylvania and Southern West Virginia. "Wishes give kids a chance to forget about their medical conditions and focus on something positive. Often, wishes can be a powerful medicine, empowering and strengthening our wish kids to fight harder against their illnesses." Back to Top

US Department of State and espnW Join Forces for Global Mentoring

The U.S. Department of State and espnW have joined forces for the second year of their Global Sports Mentoring Program. The program was created in 2012 to support the United States’ global commitment to advance the rights and participation of women and girls around the world, with sports as the vehicle creating greater opportunity.

Beginning September 8, top American female executives over four weeks will work side-by-side with emerging female leaders (age 25-40) from around the world, sharing valuable business and leadership skills. During their time together, the mentors will assist the emerging leaders in the creation of strategic action plans that will be used to develop specific sports opportunities for underserved women and girls when they return home.

“espnW is proud to continue our collaboration with the U.S. Department of State as we advance the Global Sports Mentoring Program,” said Laura Gentile, vice president, espnW. “The program truly empowers women and girls through sports, an objective of utmost importance to espnW.”

The 2013 mentors consist of executives from The Coca-Cola Company; ESPN (2); Equinox; Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA); the National Hockey League (NHL); NCAA; New Balance; New York Road Runners; Procter & Gamble; The PGA of America; Saatchi and Saatchi (2); U.S. Olympic Committee; United States Golf Association (USGA); Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA); and Women’s Tennis Association (WTA).

“We know when women and girls participate in sports they are more likely to gain the skills they need to succeed in life, but they also create stronger, more stable communities,” said Lee Satterfield, the Deputy Assistant Secretary at the U.S. Department of State about the 2013 Global Sports Mentoring Program. “In partnership with espnW, this women-to-women mentoring initiative aims to increase the number of women and girls who participate in sports worldwide.”

This collaboration between the U.S. Department of State and espnW, conducted in coordination with the University of Tennessee’s Center for Sport, Peace, and Society, aims to engage, inspire, and empower a new generation of women and girls through sports. For additional information contact ESPN's Amanda DeCastro at amanda.decastro@espn.com or Katie Leasor, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at eca-press@state.gov.Back to Top

Bright House Teams With A Gift for Teaching

In August more than 300 student backpacks were donated by Bright House Networks to A Gift for Teaching in Orlando, Fla. The backpacks were assembled and delivered by Bright House Networks employee volunteers. Upon delivery, volunteers stuffed hundreds of backpacks with school supplies to prepare them for distribution to local students.

For a decade, Bright House Networks has donated more than 5,000 backpacks to children in Orange, Osceola, Seminole and Lake counties through A Gift for Teaching, all of which are distributed to needy students. In addition, the company supports back-to-school drives in many other communities including the Tampa Bay area, as well as areas in Alabama, Michigan, Indiana and California. For additional information contact Brian Craven at brian.craven@mybrighthouse.com or 407-215-5597.

As part of the Environmental Defense Fund's Climate Corps graduate program, Scott Bright who attends Presidio Graduate School in California, was tasked with reducing energy use at Turner. He spent ten weeks evaluating current lighting systems and presented a strong business case for investing in LED solutions. Climate Corps is the Environmental Defense Fund’s summer fellowship program that places specially-trained graduate students as dedicated energy problem solvers. Working with hundreds of leading organizations, Climate Corps fellows have found an average of $1 million in energy savings for each participant.

Bright, who worked with a variety of Turner stakeholders, first had to determine what makes a good office lighting fixture. The result of the research was energy efficiency, aesthetics, low maintenance requirements and employee satisfaction. Using this information, he assembled a list of LED lights to be sampled and created an analysis detailing the lifetime costs for each proposed light. His work outlined significant cost savings and a possible energy reduction of over 50% a year. Bright’s research also showed potential savings in maintenance costs of nearly 70% annually.

John Hester, director of design engineering at Turner and director of the Time Warner Global Energy Council, said that Bright's recommendations will be phased-in over three years at Turner's buildings and will provide a blueprint for improving energy efficiency at all of Time Warner's divisions across the country.

Cable networks on Sunday September 8 will turn their logos orange in support of Hunger Awareness Month. Go Orange is designed to raise public awareness for an issue that affects almost 50 million people every day, 16 million who are children. The impact of hunger on society runs deep; it's a health issue, it's a school performance issue, it's an economic issue. The hope is that it can soon be a non-issue.

September's Go Orange campaign strives to engage the public to make ending childhood hunger a national priority. Through a variety of public engagement programs, Share Our Strength, Feeding America along with a national network of food banks across all 50 states focus the public's attention in September on hunger in America as an issue that can be remedied.

In addition to many of the participating networks changing their on-air and online logos to orange, several networks will also run public service announcements and share information on their websites and social media channels to educate viewers about the problem of childhood hunger and what can be done to help end this crisis.

ACC member, Ellen Kroner, executive vice president, communications, AMC Networks will serve as honorary chair of the WICT Touchstones Luncheon during Diversity Week in New York City. Kroner, a past member of ACC’s Board of Directors will participate in the Touchstones Luncheon October 7 in the New York Marriott Marquis in conjunction with the WICT Leadership Conference. For additional information contact Talton Gibson at tgibson@wict.org or 202-827-4782.Back to Top